then it may be appropriate to use {{external media}} to provide a direct link to the media file along with a description of the media.

The {{external media}} template should be removed as soon as a replacement of adequate quality and accuracy is available in WP:COMMONS. At that time, the link included in this template may be considered for inclusion as a regular WP:External link in the ==External links== section.

According to WP:ELNEVER and WP:COPYLINK, editors must never link to content that violates copyright or is otherwise illegal. If you are uncertain of the copyright status (for example, with links to YouTube), ask for help at Wikipedia:Media copyright questions. If you're certain that the copyright status is acceptable, but others might wonder later, make it clear in the template or in the reference that you link to material from a rightful distributor (examples can be found at grindcore).

Valid options are "left", "right" and "center". The template defaults to displaying on the right-hand-side.

width

This should be a complete width measurement including units. Examples: 300px, 22em, 30%. The template defaults to 258px wide.

media links

Each file to be linked should specify its type and have a different number, starting from 1. For example, a template containing four images and one video would label them as image1, image2, image3, image4 and video1. The attribute has a free format, so any amount of detail may be added. The first part of the entry should be formatted as a normal external link, i.e. [http://example.com/image.jpg Image description] for Image description. After that, any additional detail can be given on the same line. See the examples for details.Note: when adding a link to an external media source like this, it is essential that the source page be linked too with the date of retrieval, both to satisfy Wikipedia's sourcing criteria for the statement about the presented media and to ensure that the link can quickly be corrected should the source URL be changed. Reference tags can be used for this purpose.
It's polite if you inform the administrator of the page you link to that you are deep linking to the content of his page, marking it as an external source, also providing a link to his complete page and that if he doesn't like it he can use a script to disable deep linking.

Fighting style of Greek phalangites with long lances during the Roman-Spartan War (Note the late Greek hoplite helmets with open visors made of several parts and not from one like in earlier times. The leg protection was often leather to allow for faster movement. This fighting style was not in use during the Battle of Marathon; at that time the lances were shorter and held with one hand. Longer lances, held with both hands, were adopted with the introduction of lighter hoplites and later phalangites. As a result of their long and heavy lance which was handled with both arms they needed a lighter shield than the old hoplites.[1][2]

Just an image, taken from the War against Nabis Featured Article. This example gives full contextual information along with references.

{{ external media
| float = right
| width = 258px
| image1 = [http://www.ancientmesopotamia.net/sitebuildercontent/sitebuilderpictures/macedonianphalanx.jpg Fighting style of Greek phalangites with long lances during the Roman-Spartan War] (Note the late Greek hoplite helmets with open visors made of several parts and not from one like in earlier times. The leg protection was often leather to allow for faster movement. This fighting style was not in use during the [[Battle of Marathon]]; at that time the lances were shorter and held with one hand. Longer lances, held with both hands, were adopted with the introduction of lighter hoplites and later [[phalangite]]s. As a result of their long and heavy lance which was handled with both arms they needed a lighter shield than the old hoplites.<ref>''Warfare in the Classical World'',p. 34f (Greek Hoplite (c.480BC)) p. 67 (Iphicrates reforms)</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ancientmesopotamia.net/id27.html |title=Battle of Marathon |accessdate=2006-12-26 |format= |work=Ancient Mesopotamia}}</ref>
}}